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Female fans normally know more facts about what’s going on than men do anyway. I’d say they’re a more intelligent fan on top of that. They normally know more about what we’ve done than we know about what we’ve done. --- Tony Stewart

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There are female fans who take apart engines and will take you apart if you have a problem with that; who are drawn to the danger and mystery of the sport; who watch races on TV to witness pure passion and unscripted emotion; who love the camaraderie of these family-friendly festivals; who feel the nervous anxiety of the lip-biting wives atop the pit boxes. --- Andrew Giangola “The Weekend Starts on Wednesday”

Last Year's Race Winner: Brad KeselowkskiLikely Suspects: Here we are back at Daytona. Try not to over-think your picks this week. Stick with tried and true restrictor-plate greats and your racers will have less of a chance getting caught up in someone else's bad day. Here are some of my favorites for this week: Austin Dillon, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Trevor Bayne, Kevin Harvick, and, of course, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Even on his worst day at Daytona he is much better than most racers.

My 2 Cents: For the second consecutive year my no-brainer pick this week is a tie between Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Austin Dillon. My next picks are Joey Logano, Clint Bowyer, Trevor Bayne and Kurt Busch. I will complete my team with Michael McDowell and Cole Whitt.

The pole is the most proficient starting position in the field. Six of nine July race winners won from the Coors Light pole.

Chase Elliott and Jimmie Johnson lead all active drivers in Coors Light poles at Daytona with two each.

Only four active drivers have posted a pole for the Daytona July race: Kevin Harvick (2002), Paul Menard (2008), Matt Kenseth (2012) and Kyle Busch (2013).

The Wood Brothers have the most wins at Daytona in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with 15, followed by Hendrick Motorsports with 14.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads all active drivers with four wins. Two of them have come in the July race.

Austin Dillon leads all active drivers in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in average finishing position at Daytona with a 12.625. He also leads all active drivers in average finish in the July race with a 6.333.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kurt Busch lead all active drivers in top-10 finishes in the July race at Daytona with nine each.

Kurt Busch leads all active drivers in top-five finishes in the July race at Daytona with seven.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads the series among active drivers in laps led in the July race at Daytona with 339, followed Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch with 137 laps led each.